Reese Witherspoon isn’t just an Academy Award–winning actress. To her friends, she’s known as the “treasurer” of the group—and on a recent podcast, she got candid about the way money has shaped her views on female financial wellness.
Since hitting it big in Hollywood, Witherspoon, worth an estimated $400 million, says she’s learned a lot about money. Part of those lessons came from doing things wrong and witnessing women she’s known have financial dependence in relationships.
“I do not know a woman who doesn’t have a disaster financial story in her past,” Witherspoon said on a recent episode of the Aspire With Emma Grede podcast .
“Whether it’s her, her best friend, her sister, her mom, her grandma, her auntie—she lost all her money or she got divorced and she got stuck with the bill, or, you know, debt, so much debt,” she continued.
The Legally Blonde star began acting at a young age, appearing in commercials at just 7 years old. Witherspoon also founded her own media company, Hello Sunshine, which she sold in 2021 for $900 million (though she still oversees operations and remains on the company’s board). Despite her many successes, the 49-year-old said she still listens to every podcast about money or personal finance, and wants to help women navigate their financial journeys.
“A lot of what we learn is one course in three days in high school. We’re lucky if you get three months,” she said.
Though Witherspoon said she is “fine” now financially, she said her relationship with money could have been even better if she had learned a few things along the way.
“I did well, but I could have done amazing,” she said. “A lot of them are mindset.”
The best advice Witherspoon has received
During the podcast, Witherspoon also shared the best piece of money advice she has ever received.
“Don’t get into debt,” she said. “Do everything you can to not get into debt, and pay off those credit cards or don’t spend the money like it’s yours. It’s not yours, girlfriend.”
Witherspoon said growing up, she watched her mother struggle with finances, adding she didn’t witness her mom or grandmother saving money at all, aside from her mother’s retirement funds built up from working multiple jobs. She said it was this formative experience that led to her “passion for helping women understand and also demystifying [money].”
Another piece of advice she received: Don’t let somebody control you with money.
“If somebody says, ‘I’ll take care of it, and I’ll take care of you, and I’ll take care of this.’ That person could leave, that person can hurt you. You always keep your job. Your job is your life insurance,” she said.